Pokeshipping Week 2018
by nyislandersgirl
Summary: Seven short stories celebrating Ash, Misty and their relationship with one another in celebration of Pokeshipping Week 2018.
1. Misty in Kalos

**Happy Pokeshipping Week everyone! I'm a day late uploading, but I figure extending the week by a bit isn't so bad, right? Just an extra day of shippy fun!**

 **With that, please enjoy day one of Pokeshipping Week 2018!**

* * *

 **Misty in Kalos**

Kalos, a densely populated and diverse region, is shaped like a five-pointed star.

That's a favorite fact of the Kalosians; the name for natives of the region. One point is created by a peninsula flowing out into the sea. The other three points consist of a coastline, mountain ranges, and rivers. Its geographical diversity is just one of the reasons so many people, whether they're native to Kalos or not, find so much beauty in the region. No matter what one's preference was, they could likely find a comfortable location for themselves in Kalos.

One could visit Central Kalos, filled with forested plains and rivers and classical, well preserved architectural features including old chateaus and castles.

Coastal Kalos was located by the sea, offering rocky shores and lush beaches. It tended to be a popular vacation destination for visitors.

Mountain Kalos, as its name suggests, is more mountainous than the other two divisions, and runs colder than them as well, with snow being a common sight in this area.

Naturally, when she was presented with an opportunity to travel to the region, Misty had her heart set on visiting Costal Kalos.

"I _definitely_ want to go to Azure Bay," Misty rambled on, her eyes sparkling. "I've read you can find quite a few rare water type Pokémon there! I've also heard that Shalour City is just beautiful, and it's got amazing views of the water! Do you think we could get into one of the hotels on the beach?"

Her question was met with a relatively loud snore. Scowling, Misty reached over and shook her companion's shoulder. "Ash, wake up!"

The raven haired male awoke with a jolt, his shoulders stiffening as he separated himself from his seat. Settling down, Ash blinked a few times and glanced over at Misty, smiling sheepishly as he rubbed the back of his neck. "Sorry about that."

Misty, in turn, gave her own smile, this one sympathetic. "It's alright. I know this is a pretty long flight."

Ash nodded his head before looking over his other shoulder, towards the window. "What were you trying to tell me?"

"I was just thinking about a few of the places I want to visit while we're in Kalos," Misty replied, happy that Ash had followed up with her. "I'm sure you're not surprised, but most of them are near the water."

Ash chuckled and turned his attention back onto her. "Sounds about right! I'll make sure you get to see everything you want, Mist."

Giggling softly, Misty leaned over and gave Ash a quick kiss on the cheek, causing him to blush. He and Misty had been dating for a little while at that point, but he still wasn't used to public displays of affection; even ones as innocent as that.

When the plane finally landed, Ash and Misty collected their carry ons from the overhead bin and proceeded to exit the plane and head towards baggage claim. The airport was quite busy, but Misty had noticed that ever since they'd gotten off the plane, Ash appeared to be distracted, as though he were looking for something.

"You okay?" She asked, only somewhat teasingly.

"Huh?" Ash murmured, stilling his head from turning side to side to look strictly at Misty. "Oh, yeah. I'm fine."

Misty raised an eyebrow, but didn't say anything else. They made it down to baggage claim and, as they waited for their luggage by the belt, Ash continued looking around. Misty was about to ask him what he was doing (she knew he had to be up to _something_ ), but she didn't have a chance before his head stopped and his eyebrows raised.

"Can you stay here and wait for the bags?" Ash asked, turning towards his girlfriend.

"Sure…" Misty trailed off. "But why?"

A bright smile etched its way onto Ash's face. "You'll see in a minute."

Once again, Misty's follow up question was cut off, this time by Ash bolting. Pikachu, who had initially been sitting between the couple's feet, instead chose to climb up onto Misty's shoulder. The redhead smirked and scratched the mouse behind his ears, idly commenting, "I wish I knew what he was up to. He's got to be acting all secretive for a reason." Thinking about it for a moment, Misty grinned and added, "Maybe it's a special surprise! Like an excursion or something like that."

"Pika," Pikachu squeaked.

"Hey guys! Look who's here!"

Misty looked up, and her face immediately went blank. Ash had returned, this time with someone else in tow.

Serena.

For what it was worth, the honey blonde looked just as thrown off as Misty, and Ash was completely oblivious to it all.

Clearing her throat, Misty smiled weakly and offered a cordial, "hi, Serena."

The Kalos native returned Misty's delicate grin. "Nice to see you again, Misty."

Pikachu, who could sense the awkwardness unlike his trainer, shifted his eyes between the two female trainers. Hoping to ease some of the tension, Pikachu hopped off of Misty's shoulder and into Serena's arms, happily greeting the performer.

"Hi there, Pikachu!" Serena giggled.

The electric mouse squeaked and began pointing towards the far wall, where there were some water fountains. "Oh, are you thirsty? I can take you to get some water, if that's alright with Ash!"

Ash beamed and nodded his head. "Yeah, go for it!"

Serena nodded just once before walking off with Pikachu. Once she was out of earshot, Misty turned towards Ash and shot him a glare. "Seriously?!"

Ash appeared surprised by Misty's attitude. "What?"

"Why did you invite Serena?!"

The raven haired trainer frowned. "I thought you and Serena were friends now."

"We are," Misty replied with a sigh. She was telling the truth. Sure, she and Serena had gotten off to a bit of a rocky start; both were jealous of the other, with Serena realizing Ash and Misty were a couple, and Misty finding out Serena had been Ash's first kiss. They had been able to get past those issues, however, and had actually become friendly with one another. "That's not the problem."

"Then what is it?" Ash asked, inclining his head.

Misty nervously shifted her weight to one side before replying, "I thought this was almost going to be like…a vacation. For just the two of us."

A blush suddenly spread across Ash's face. "Oh."

"I understand if you want to meet up with our friends, but I wish you'd given me a heads up," Misty continued.

Ash nodded his head. "I guess I should've. I'm sorry, Misty. I was thinking it'd be a nice surprise, but I get where you're coming from."

Misty smiled at her boyfriend. "I appreciate that." Realization suddenly hitting her, Misty shiftily added, "I think I need to make my own apology to Serena. She probably thought I was unhappy to see her. That wasn't a great reaction to have."

"Nah, no way she thinks that!" Ash reassured. "In fact, I'll go let her know right now while you wait for the bags!"

Misty was about to say she could do it for herself, but Ash was gone before she could get the words out. He jogged over to Serena and Pikachu, who were just finishing up at the water fountain. As soon as Ash came into Serena's vision, the blonde lifted her head and shot Ash a glare not dissimilar to the one Misty had given him.

"Now what?" Ash groaned to himself, skidding to a halt.

"Ash, why did you invite me here?!" Serena hissed. "Misty obviously wasn't expecting me! She probably thought this was going to be a romantic vacation for the two of you!"

Ash blinked hard. "Can you guys use telepathy with one another or something like that?"

Serena huffed, choosing not to answer that question. "I've got to get out of here so you two can be alone."

"No, not yet!" Ash cried, much to Serena's confusion. "I mean…Misty is fine with you being here. She's fine with seeing Clemont and Bonnie too! She just wishes I had told her first."

Serena's deadpan expression perfectly complimented her haughty, " _there's_ an idea."

Ash pouted. "Yeah, yeah, I get it. I messed up. But now that she knows, this little trip can be romantic _and_ have our friends involved!"

The blonde sighed and shook her head, striding past Ash. "You sure know how to save yourself."

Missing the sarcasm in her voice, Ash proudly saluted the back of Serena's head before running after her. They were soon back with Misty, who by then had retrieved her and Ash's luggage from the belt.

"Ready to go?" Misty asked, looking between Ash and Serena with a smile on her face. The mood was far more comfortable now.

"Yep!" Ash confirmed, grabbing the handle of his bag. "Off to Lumiose Gym!"

Serena and Misty both smirked and rolled their eyes at the same time. As they trailed behind Ash, Misty looked over at Serena and apologized. "I'm sorry for acting unfriendly before. I don't want you to think I was unhappy to see you."

Serena shook her head. "Don't worry about it! I know you were expecting to be alone with Ash. It's his fault for not picking up on that. Or talking to you about meeting up with me, Clemont, and Bonnie first."

Misty's smirk widened, and a mischievous glint went off in her eyes. "You know, I think you and I are more alike than people realize."

Serena giggled and gently inclined her head. "Hey, I think that's a compliment!"

"What're you guys talking about?"

Misty and Serena looked up, realizing Ash was peering at them over his shoulder. The girls exchanged looks before giggling together, earning more bewilderment from Ash.

"Don't worry about it!" They chimed together.

Ash hummed nervously and turned his eyes down towards Pikachu. "That tells me I should _definitely_ worry about it."


	2. I Love You but We Can't Be Together

**(My) day two! I replaced the originally chosen theme, because as much as I liked the concept of Evil Ash (I love those episodes) I just couldn't come up with a good idea for it!**

 **I definitely thought this theme was pretty angsty when I first saw it, which generally isn't my forte, so I decided to try and take it in a different direction. Enjoy!**

* * *

 **I Love You, but We Can't Be Together**

"I love you, but we can't be together."

Ash raised an eyebrow as those words left Misty's lips. She was leaning against a wall, his hands pressed against it beside her shoulders.

"Why not?" He asked, his voice just above a whisper.

"Because it's not appropriate," Misty replied, her tone making the assumption that fact should've been obvious to him.

Ash, however, was not deterred. "I don't care about being appropriate."

"Oh, I'm well aware of that. But I do."

Finally lowering his hands, Ash's face contorted into a pout. Misty peeled herself away from the wall, straightening out her sky blue t-shirt which Ash had so carelessly jostled during their (very quick) tryst.

"Who's in the gym beside your sisters and the Pokémon?" Ash challenged.

Misty sighed and shook her head. He just wasn't going to give up. "If a challenger shows up and you've got me pinned to the wall in a _very_ compromising position, it's going to be awkward."

"I don't care about being awkward, either."

Growling lowly, Misty stepped around her boyfriend. "Do you care about being sold out to the tabloids?"

Ash thought about it for a moment. "Not really, if it means I get to make out with you."

Though she kept walking, Misty smirked, glad that Ash couldn't see her face. "Remember when you didn't have a clue about romance? Times certainly have changed. I never would've guessed that kissing would've become one of your favorite hobbies."

"Honestly, me either," Ash admitted, finally turning on a heel to follow after her. "But it's kind of nice!"

Misty's smirk grew. "Look, you'll care about the tabloids when our faces are splashed all over them. We were trying to keep this relationship private for a _reason_ , Ash. That means we have to be discrete. We can do plenty of making out when there isn't a chance of us getting caught by some nosy kid."

"I would've never sold out a gym leader for their relationship when I was a trainer," Ash reasoned.

"Right, because you would've had no idea what they were doing if you caught them kissing," Misty teased. "You'd probably have thought they were sharing gum or something dumb like that."

"What, like spitting it in each other's mouths?" Ash appealed, sticking his tongue out afterwards. "That's disgusting! I never would've thought of something that gross!"

"That's because you're thinking about it now with your big boy brain," Misty snickered, tapping on the side of his head.

Ash grumbled as he pulled away from her. Misty just laughed in response, holding her hands behind her back as she and Ash re-entered the gym's lobby. "Daisy, have any trainers stopped by looking for a gym battle?"

The bored blonde lowered her magazine, rolling her eyes once her youngest sister was in view. "No. It's _so_ dead here! You really should just close up for the rest of the day."

"I'm not going to do that!" Misty cried. "Just because its quiet now doesn't mean it will be in a little while."

Daisy huffed and lifted her magazine back up. "You're way too confident." Quickly throwing her reading down again, Daisy rushed out, "but if you're that confident about it, why don't _you_ sit here and send _me_ home early?"

"Not a chance," Misty scoffed.

Daisy scowled. "You're so mean."

"Only because you're so lazy," Misty fired back calmly.

Ash shifted his gaze between the two sisters before his eyes suddenly widened. "I know! How about _I_ watch the gym for you, Mist?"

"YES!" Daisy cheered, jumping to her feet.

"What?!" Misty cried, her own panicked voice overlapping her sister's more excited one. "No! Ash, I _just_ told you we can't be seen together here."

"But I'd just be sitting at the front desk," Ash tried, motioning to where Daisy was currently stationed. "That's different than the two of us getting caught making out!"

This comment piqued Daisy's interest. "Making out? In the gym? Oooh, I didn't know you had it in you, baby sister!"

Misty's entire face turned red. "We're not talking about that right now."

"Really?" Daisy gasped playfully. "Because Ash brought it up, so now I'm very interested in that!"

"Well don't be," Misty tensely spat. "Daisy, you're not going anywhere, and Ash, you're not sitting at the front desk."

"Why?!" Daisy and Ash groaned simultaneously, causing them both to exchange bewildered glances. Misty, on the other hand, made her own disturbed face.

"You two have clearly been spending too much time together," Misty grumbled, crossing her arms. "I'm going to fix that right now. Daisy, sit back down. I need you to keep an eye out for any potential challengers. And Ash, go walk around downtown for a bit. You need to spend some time away from the gym."

Ash frowned. "But that means spending time away from you."

"Very swift," Misty teased, earning a scowl from her boyfriend. "Look, Ash, you know that I love you, but you also know we are not prepared to deal with any more media attention than you already get. Not right now, at least. The gym's only open for another couple of hours, so just go do your own thing until I can close up and we can go somewhere more private."

Ash still didn't seem to like this idea. Noticing this, Daisy raised a single finger and suggested, "or Misty could just close the gym _now…_ "

"I already told you no," Misty growled lowly.

Ash narrowed his eyes at his girlfriend. "What am I supposed to do downtown? I hate shopping."

"You can go get a snack," Misty easily suggested. "Or a second lunch. Just as long as you don't ruin your appetite for dinner. Your mom invited us over, so I don't need you filling up before then."

"Well, then I'd be eating _third_ lunch, cause I already ate second…" Ash mused.

"Ew!" Daisy whined, clutching her hands to her chest.

Misty sighed and squeezed the bridge of her nose. "Ash, just go."

Clearly offended by the order, Ash started to pout again. Feeling badly for him, Misty strode forward in order to press a quick, innocent kiss against his cheek. This improved his mood considerably, as evidenced by the smile that appeared on his face as soon as Misty pulled away.

"Alright," Ash finally relented. "I'll get out of here for a little while. Just let me get Pikachu!"

He jogged past Misty to head towards the battle area, where he'd left his partner to play with the gym's inhabitants. Misty was still smirking, but that quickly dissolved into a frown when she looked out the front door and noticed the black lens of a camera pressed against the glass.

"Son of a –" She cursed, storming towards the door.

Daisy, who hadn't seen what her sister had, raised an eyebrow at Misty's suddenly angry behavior. "Misty, what's up with you?"

Without even really considering Daisy's question, Misty grumbled aloud, "I _told_ Ash we couldn't be together here!"

That's when it clicked in Daisy's brain that someone was likely spying outside of the gym. As Misty ran out the sliding front door, Daisy watched and, once her sister was out of earshot, muttered, "Well, _you're_ the one who just kissed him in front of a glass window…"


	3. Trying to Impress Each Other

**Welcome to day three! I stuck with the theme for this one, it sounded like a fun one to take on.**

* * *

 **Trying to Impress Each Other**

"What's this idiot doing now?"

"Pi."

Misty and Pikachu were watching Ash with similar expressions; ones that reflected exasperation and bewilderment. The raven haired trainer, on the other hand, was halfway up a huge tree, apparently trying to retrieve a single piece of fruit hanging from one of its branches.

"You're going to fall down and break your neck!" Misty scolded.

Ash ignored her and continued climbing. When he finally got close enough to the branch, he started reaching out to try and grab the hanging apple. Pikachu squeaked and covered his eyes, while Misty winced and looked away only slightly. It took a few more seconds, but after some additional reaching, Ash managed to get his hand on the fruit and rip it away from the branch.

"I got it!" Ash cried triumphantly, holding the apple over his head.

"Great," Misty drawled as she rolled her eyes. "Now get from down there already!"

Ash held the apple between his teeth by its stem so he could use both of his hands to scale back down the tree's massive trunk. He began inching down slowly, acquiring some additional speed as he continued his descent. Misty had told herself to walk away; she didn't want to be there when Ash became one with the ground. Despite what her mind was telling her, however, her legs were betraying her; she seemed rooted to her spot, and simply couldn't move.

When Ash was roughly eight feet from the bottom, he finally looked over his shoulder and removed the apple from his mouth, grinning at Misty. "See! I knew I wouldn't'-"

He leaned back a bit too much, however, and lost his grip on the trunk. He fell backwards with a yelp, while Misty and Pikachu both gasped. Ash landed hard on his back, the arm that held the fruit still held up high in the air. Misty and Pikachu ran over to the boy, who was moaning in pain.

"Ash, are you alright?!" Misty cried.

He groaned once more before slowly sitting up. "Yeah…"

Misty appeared relieved for just a quick second before reaching forward to snatch the apple from his hand. "That was a really stupid thing to do! All to get _one_ piece of fruit!"

"It looked really good," Ash defended himself, rubbing his lower spine. "Besides, I was totally fine until the end!"

"Key phrase," Misty grumbled, switching her wary glance from the apple back onto Ash.

"Pikachu really likes apples," Ash continued. "And when I saw that one, I thought it'd be a nice treat for him after lunch."

"Pi pika, pi pi pikachu pika, pikapi," Pikachu whined.

Misty sighed and shook her head. "Pikachu didn't ask you to get the apple for him, though. That was your own foolish choice."

Having recollected himself, Ash jumped back to his feet and offered Misty a crooked smile. "Yeah, I know that. I'm just glad I was able to get it!"

He took the apple back from Misty with a single wave of his hand. Misty still appeared annoyed, but chose to drop the subject as she turned on a heel. "You're impossible. Come on, we should be getting back to Brock. I'm sure lunch is almost ready by now."

Ash's face lit up at the prospect of food. He offered his arm to Pikachu, who crawled up to perch himself on the boy's shoulder. Once the mouse was secured, Ash broke out into a jog, hurrying past Misty. She rolled her eyes to herself, yet soon found herself jogging as well, not wanting Ash to get too far ahead of her, lest he find himself in any more trouble.

The two soon made their way back to the camp they had set up, where Brock was sitting over a steaming pot.

"There you two are," Brock sighed. "You were gone for a pretty long time. I was starting to get worried!"

"It was no big deal," Misty replied with a shrug. "Ash just nearly killed himself, that's all."

Brock looked up with a raised eyebrow. "No big deal, huh?"

Ash quickly began to panic. "Don't listen to Misty! It wasn't anything like that!"

"I found him climbing a gigantic tree just to get that apple," Misty explained, pointing at the fruit in Ash's hand for emphasis. "But don't worry; he only plummeted to the ground once!"

Brock remained silent for another moment before letting out a tired breath. "I should've known."

Both Ash and Misty were intrigued by the comment.

"Should've known what?" Ash asked.

Brock chuckled and pointed the ladle he was using towards at the younger boy. "You're trying to show off."

Misty scoffed, while Ash appeared estranged. "Showing off? To who?"

Brock didn't say anything out loud, but he shifted his gaze towards Misty. Ash missed the cue, however, and his expression remained lost. Misty noticed it, however, and scowled in response.

"Never mind," Brock muttered, spooning some stew into a bowl. "Just come get your lunch."

Ash quickly forgot the topic at hand as he rushed forward to try and grab the bowl.

"Hey!" Misty protested from behind. "Haven't you ever heard of ladies first?"

The boy skidded to a halt, looking over sheepishly at Misty. "But I'm so hungry…"

"And you think I'm not?" Misty scoffed. Ash looked like he was about to protest again, so Misty sighed and relented, "whatever. Just take it."

Ash blinked, but he still turned around to take the bowl from Brock. As Ash walked away with his lunch, Misty narrowed her eyes and hurried over to Brock, kneeling down next to him. The aspiring Pokémon breeder raised an eyebrow, turning to look at her.

"Yes?" Brock teasingly pressed.

"Do you really think Ash was being that dumb to try and show off?" Misty asked in a near whisper.

"Oh, I don't know," Brock huffed. "I was just trying to be funny, that's all."

"Yeah right," Misty huffed. "No offense, Brock, but you're not really one to just randomly make jokes. I think you might have been onto something!"

Brock stayed silent as he ladled out another bowlful of stew for Misty. After a long moment, he replied, "what would you do if he _was_ trying to impress you?"

Now it was Misty's turn to think in silence as she accepted her lunch from Brock. Finally, she admitted, "I'm not really sure."

"Would you try and impress him back?"

Brock had been, for the most part, joking when he said that. Misty, however, was seriously taking it into consideration. She certainly wouldn't do anything as dumb as Ash, but if she could do _something_ that would catch his attention…

"Misty?"

The girl shook her head and looked back up at Brock. She'd evidently spaced out, based on his bemused expression and her clear disorientation. Misty gently shrugged her shoulders before getting to her feet and walking over to the table, where Ash was already seated and ripping through his lunch. She sat across from him, which didn't even get an ounce of the boy's attention. Misty just silently shook her head as she began eating from her own bowl.

Once everyone had finished their lunch and was helping to clean up, an idea popped into Misty's head. After she finished drying off the last bowl, she sauntered over to her backpack and pulled out a portable fishing rod. She did it perhaps a bit too dramatically, but all of the extra movement caught Ash's attention, which is exactly what Misty had wanted.

"What're you doing?" Ash called over to the girl.

"I think I might try to go fishing in that lake we saw nearby," Misty nonchalantly replied, unfolding the rod. "I happen to be pretty good at it, so I think I should nab a new water type or two."

Ash's eyes lit up at the prospect of new Pokémon. Misty pretty much knew that was the case, but she was hoping he'd at least heard her little humble brag about her fishing skills.

"Can I come too?" Ash asked hopefully.

"Sure you can!" Misty replied cheerfully. Brock raised an eyebrow, finding Misty's sudden excitement to be a bit odd. She usually got annoyed when Ash tried to interrupt her fishing time. "Come on, let's go!"

Without much thought, she reached out and grabbed Ash's hand, pulling him to his feet and dragging him behind her. Brock watched them go, his brow furrowed in bewilderment. He would try and stop them, remind them that they had yet to finish helping him clean up from lunch, but he supposed there was just no use.

If they were really going to try and go tit for tat to impress each other, there was absolutely no stopping them.


	4. Traveling Companions React to Dating

**Made it to (my!) day four just under the wire!**

 **This one was crazy fun to write.**

* * *

 **Traveling Companions React to Them Dating**

By all accounts, Ash and Misty had expected that Brock would start jumping up and down, hollering, going all but wild once they announced to him that they were dating.

Instead, all they got was a lowering of the newspaper he was reading and a roll of his eyes before he lifted the newspaper back up to his face.

"Finally."

Misty scowled and grabbed the newspaper, forcefully lowering it, much to Brock's chagrin. "What do you mean _finally?!_ "

"Misty, I've been waiting for this for _years_ ," Brock sighed, assuming the reason had been obvious. "You and Ash aren't very subtle, despite how naïve you both are."

"I resent that remark," Misty scoffed. "The only naïve one here is Ash. Don't lump me in with him."

The raven haired teen narrowed his eyes. "Seriously?"

Misty furrowed her brow. "Well, am I wrong?"

"Uh, yeah!" Ash cried.

The two started to argue, earning another eye roll from Brock before he lifted his newspaper back up.

"You two may have finally realized how you feel about one another, but I see your arguments are still going strong…"

 **XXX**

Tracey was very happy to hear the news, but perhaps unsurprisingly, he wasn't shocked by it either.

"I've been waiting for this!" Tracey happily commented, glancing up from his sketchbook. He'd been working on recreating the scene of a Budew and Oddish playing in front of him on paper.

"What do you mean you've been waiting?" Ash asked, vaguely remembering that Brock had said something similar.

"I always kind of knew you two liked one another," Tracey replied, looking back down at his work. "I was just wondering if you'd both ever stop being stubborn enough to admit it."

Misty didn't seem pleased with this answer. "Tracey, come on, we're not stubborn!"

Tracey looked up from his sketchbook once more, this time fully. His expression reflected an unmistakable _"really?"_ , one that was a bit more pointed than either Ash or Misty were used to seeing out of the Pokémon watcher.

"Okay, fine," Misty grumbled, folding her arms. "We're stubborn."

 **XXX**

Telling May they were dating resulted in a near over-the-top reaction. Ash and Misty had seen a _lot_ out of the brunette coordinator over the years in terms of emotion, but even this one was new to them.

First of all, she'd shrieked so loudly that both Ash and Misty were certain only some _Pokémon_ were able to hear the full magnitude of her inhuman noise. Then she'd started jumping up and down, rambling on and on about how "sweet" and how "cute" it was, and how she couldn't wait to help the two start planning their wedding.

"Whoa, May, hold on!" Misty cried, waving her hands in front of herself. "We _just_ made this official; we're not getting married any time soon!"

"Never too early to start thinking about that kind of stuff!" May refuted. "Besides, you guys have liked each other for so long that-"

"Wait a second," Ash interrupted, May still too thrilled with the news to even care. "You _knew_ we liked each other?"

May's joy subsided a bit. "Well, yeah, Ash. It _was_ kind of obvious."

"I didn't think it was…" Ash murmured, rubbing the back of his neck.

"May! All your screaming broke the glass I was drinking out of!"

Max came stomping into the living room, his hands on his hips.

"Seriously?" May asked, sounding mystified. "I thought that only happened in TV shows!"

"Of course you would," Max scoffed, earning a glare from his sister. "What's got you so excited anyway?"

Her face lighting up again, May motioned towards the video phone where Ash and Misty were visible on the screen and gleefully announced, "These two are officially dating!"

Max shifted his eyes from May, to the video screen, back to May.

"That's the least surprising thing I've heard all day. Like…less surprising than you thinking physics isn't real."

May went right back to looking offended, while Ash and Misty just appeared stunned. Turning his attention back towards the screen, Max gave the visibly shocked couple a salute.

"I'm proud of you two for finally coming to your senses," Max concluded, turning on a heel. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go clean up the mess May made."

 **XXX**

When Dawn heard the news, she burst out laughing.

"What's so funny?" Ash asked, furrowing his brow.

"You guys are acting like this is Earth shattering," Dawn snickered.

"It's not?" Ash squeaked.

"No!" Dawn guffawed. "Ash, seriously, you almost tore my head off that one time I tried using your Misty lure. I knew _then_ that you were in love with her."

"But…but…that didn't…I didn't…"

Dawn smirked as Ash stammered. She knew what he was trying to say. "You might not have thought it meant anything, but it totally did. I'm a girl, Ash. I'm in tune to this kind of stuff!"

Misty could hardly believe what she was hearing. "So…you're really not surprised by this."

"Absolutely not," Dawn confirmed. "But I am happy for you guys! You make such a cute couple. Plus, me and Brock can finally stop taking bets on when you two will actually make it official!"

Misty's eyes nearly fell out of her head. "There were _bets?!_ "

 **XXX**

Iris was busy eating an apple when Ash and Misty called her up to inform her of their relationship status.

"This is good!" Ash stressed to a bewildered Misty. "Iris _always_ starts eating fruit when stuff gets all romantic!"

"I'm not eating this because of you two; I'm eating this because I'm _hungry_."

Ash's eyebrow twitched as he turned towards the screen. Iris was still munching away at her apple, and she didn't seem at all surprised.

"You really don't think this is romantic?" Misty asked, sounding exasperated. "Two of your friends calling you up to tell you they're dating?"

"Oh, of course it is!" Iris giggled. "It's just…I've kind of been expecting this for a while now."

Misty groaned and buried her face in her hands.

"Iris, who are you talking to?"

"Oh, Cilan's back!" Iris cried excitedly before looking over her shoulder. "It's Ash and Misty! Guess what? They finally broke down and admitted they like each other!"

Cilan gasped and pushed himself into the frame. "What wonderful news! A beautiful young couple with such fantastic chemistry!"

Iris sighed and muttered, "Arceus, you're so embarrassing," before taking another bite of her apple.

Misty picked her head up, her smile more genuine. "Thank you, Cilan! It's nice to hear from someone who's actually surprised!"

The connoisseur's face suddenly changed. "Oh, I'm not surprised. Just ecstatic it's finally come to fruition!"

Misty's head went right back into her hand.

 **XXX**

Serena was clearly a little ticked off, perhaps saddened, by the news, but not even she appeared taken off guard. Neither did Clemont or Bonnie, for that matter.

"Let me get this straight," Misty practically growled. "You were all expecting this too?"

"Ash _did_ talk a lot about you while he was in Kalos…" Clemont timidly replied.

"And I found a picture of you in his backpack once!" Bonnie crowed. "I always meant to ask you, Ash; was that just for innocent purposes, or did you ever use it to-"

" _BONNIE!_ " Clemont shrieked, his whole face turning bright red. Misty was embarrassed as well, but Ash didn't seem to be getting it.

Serena sighed and finally looked both Ash and Misty in the eyes, her mood having shifted a bit. "Well, I'm happy for you two. I mean, I'm not really surprised either, but…I'm happy for you!"

Misty hung her head, and Ash just blinked his eyes.

"Wait…I still don't get what Bonnie was asking."

 **XXX**

Lillie and Mallow actually had similar reactions to May, but both also admitted they weren't surprised by the news. Kiawe and Sophocles were far calmer than their female friends, and also agreed that it was a pretty obvious outcome.

"To be honest, we kind of thought you two were dating when we first went to Kanto," Mallow admitted. "We were more surprised to find out you _weren't_."

"Yeah, you two seemed made for each other!" Lillie agreed.

"That battle you two had was one giant flirt fest," Kiawe stated plainly.

"Mallow and Lillie told me not to go near you two at night in case you were making out," Sophocles added.

These things Ash _did_ understand, and now it was his turn to blush furiously. Misty had her arms wrapped around herself, looking rather shell shocked.

"Come on, you guys are _adorable_ together!" Mallow stressed. "Just because no one is surprised doesn't mean it's not great news."

"What's great news?"

Lana popped up amidst the group, taking a sip out of a drink she'd just returned with.

"Ash and Misty are dating!" Lillie announced.

The two of them leaned in, waiting for Lana's reaction. She seemed to think about it for a second before taking a long, slow sip from her drink and pulling away.

"Nice."

Ash and Misty nearly fell flat on their faces.

"Lana, really?!" Misty groaned. "That's all you have to say about it?!"

Lana shrugged her shoulders before taking another quick sip. "Well, it is nice. I always liked you two together!" Taking one more sip, Lana pulled away from her straw again and held up a single finger, her face growing serious. "Just don't forget to be safe."

Now _everyone_ fell to the floor.

" _Lana!_ " Kiawe hissed.

"What?" Lana asked plainly. "Teen pregnancy and STDs are serious issues, Kiawe."

"I'm hanging up now," Misty announced, disconnecting the call before Lana could continue with her unprovoked health lesson.

For a while after that, Ash and Misty just sat in silence. Finally, Ash slowly turned his head towards Misty and prompted, "Guess we're not very subtle, huh?"

Misty clicked her tongue. "Apparently not."

* * *

 **Bonnie and Lana 100% have the same energy.**


End file.
